Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-11-12
and then that it shall be paid in certain

and then that it shall be paid in certain
way, can be reasonably and equitably con-
strued only as recurring payment at the
day if the prescribed mode of payment
shall be adequate TO accomplish it-espe-
cially so where the condition of nom pay
ment is forfeiture of the magnitude con-
templated in this Act. Such provision in
a statute or contract imposing such q for
fixture is to be construed in favor of the
debtor, and against the forfeiture, for it is
an ancient maxim that forfeitures are not
to be favored Time ought not to be
deemed of the essence of such a con-
tract" but the stipulation as to time should
yield to the stipulation as to mode of pay
ment, in case of conflict At all events,
however this may be as matter of strict
statutory construction. there is no doubt
that wise and liberal legislative policy re-
CURES benevolent Interpretation of such
contract when the enforcement of it rests
with the legislative department of the Gov
eminent. 1t is always to be bornei in mind
that this advance was not made for the
benefit of the companies or for their profit.
1t was made to induce private capitalists to
undertake and carry forward a great ma
tional enterprise for the national benefit,
which it was impracticable to have con-
NoNbct "LOti1 tllC Ca pClISc VI lilC
Every consideration of Justice and fairness
requires that those who came forward at
the nations call and carried this gigantic
undertaking to completion in the face of
almost insuperable difficulties, and thus
performed great and lasting public service
in great public exigency, should be dealt
with in a broad and generous spirit.
VII.
The doubts expressed by those Senators
and Representatives who feared that the
Government aid provided for in the Pacific
Railroad Act of 1862 was not sufficient to
enlist the necessary private cepital to
undertake the work vigorously, and to
carry it through to completion, were justi-
fed by the event. At the first session of
the Thirty eighth Congress, in 1864, it was
reported that although the Union Pacific
Company had organized and expended a
considerable amount Of money in prelim-
mary work, it had not built rod of its
main road. The company had found that
the aid offered by the Government was en-
tirely inadequate, and that, under the re-
strictive provisions of the Act, money
could not be obtained from private sources
TO carry on and complete the work.
The very result thus came shout which
had been feared by Senator Wilson and
others. Congress, in its anxiety to secure
the Government, had deprived the COM
pany of the power to borrow the necessary
private capital, and had thus thrown an
obstacle in the way of the great work
which all were so DESTROYS of accomplish
ing, at least so far as the eastern section of
the road was concerned.
The Central Pacific Company had done
somewhat better. Although it was per-
haps more injuriously affected than the
Union Pacific by the inadequacy of the
Government aid, and by the impossibility
of borrowing necessary capital from private
sources, and although it had a very heavy
part of the road to build, it had courage
| ously undertaken the work, and had con-
structed some thirty-two miles of its line.
Its superior energy is accounted for, in part
at least, by the greater need of California
for transcontinental railroad. The rest
of the country needed the road but it might
afford little delay, but the necessity of il
to California was overwhelming, immediate
and urgent. There was thus public SEN
! timent behind the California company, and
shared in by the members of the company,
which spurred it on to extraordinary exer-
tons.
From every quarter, however, from the
west as we'll as from the east, came the CRY
that the Act of 1862 must be amended, or
| the work could not be carried to compile
ton. Greater Government aid was neces-
sary, and it was necessary, too, that some
OF the more stringent provisions of the Act
should be modified so as to enable the
| companies to borrow money from private
sources, and to avail themselves of all pos
sible means and facilities for accomplish.
ing their gigantic task. Under the stress
of this demand the supplementary Act Of
| 1864 was passed.
That Act doubled the amount of the land
grant of 1862. 1t allowed the issuance by
the companies of first mortgage bonds. the
lien of which was to be paramount TO the
Government, except as to the services tC
| the Government required of the companies
| 1t required only half the cost of Govern.
{ ment transportation to be applied to the
payment of the bonds; and, as to the Cen
| tral Pacific Company, it provided for the
! completion of the road in sections OF
| twenty-five miles annually, instead of forty
miles, as required in the termer Act There
| were other changes, too, the general tenor
of which was to make the terms easier fol
! the companies than they were under the
Act of 1862. This was the purpose and
| scope of the entire amendatory Act. II
| was designed throughout to give the com.
| panies better and more favorable bargain
because it was generally felt that under the
| previous Act the necessary private capital
and enterprise could not be brought into
| the work, and, therefore, the work could
not be successfully carried through.
This general purpose of the Act of 1864
is manifest upon the face of the Act itself
but, if it were at all doubtful. the doubt
would be removed by consulting the de-
bates and proceedings of that session.
Those debates and proceedings make it
entirely clear that Congress, and especially
the House, was influenced, in making that
enactment, by considerable and generous
spirit towards the companies, and that it
was still less inclined than the Congress of
1862 to exact hard terms from these COM
panies or to require of them strict and abb
solute payment, at all events, of the money
subsidy advanced by the Government.
1t is true that this liberality of sentiment
toward the companies manifested by the
Congress of 1864 was not by any means a
unanimous sentiment in either house.
There were some members, like Mr. Pruyn,
of New York, who thought that the COM
panies should be practically ousted from
the control of the work, and that the Gov
eminent should, in effect, take direct
charge of it. There were others, like Mr..
Washburne, of Illinois, professed friends of
the road, who yet manifested great bitter
ness toward the companies, and seemed
ready, indeed, to let the work go by de-
lauit ludil 10 any Oh the con-
cessions asked to facilitate its accomplish
ment. But the prevailing spirit was clearly
one of liberality toward those who had un-
dertaken the construction of the road. To
indicate this prevailing spirit we present a
few extracts from remarks of prominent
friends of the bill.
Among those who were most earnest in
their advocacy of the bill in the House was
the great commoner," Thaddeus Stevens,
of Pennsylvania. In the course of the de-
bate Mr.. Stevens said Gong. Globe, 1st
Sess. 3Sth Cong, PIP. 1854, 1850:
What does this bill propose? 1t does not pro-
pose concessions of great value to the railroad
company. 1t proposes to make work much
over the Alps 1t proposes great concessions for
the road to work under for under the old bill
they could not work at all | admit that the
company did know, and believe. and intend by
this bill that the Government should aid the
company somewhat more than by the old bill
or it would have been idle for us to passit. The
original bill was passed here after great strug-
gle, and it was piece of Patchwork remem-
Der the struggle well. The bill as passed had
many imperfections and the company could
not work under it. Hence, it was after the two
millions of subscriptions were taken up by
'mercenary' men, by enough men who grasp
at the opportunity of putting their ten and
twenty thousand dollars into this mine of
gold" which the gentleman (Mr Washburne)
thinks is such great boon TO them-hence it
was that these men who, l think from patriotic
motives formed this organization and put their